Love and the Loveless
by The Path of a Storyteller
Summary: All seemed well for Jaune. Having overcome the initial tribulations of Beacon- with certain difficulties. Even so, he had finally gained his right to step through Beacon's gates, as leader of his own team no less! However, this huntsman to be will find himself in a whole new set of dilemmas as he stumbles upon beings Remnant has not remembered to record in its history- the succubi.


**Ch 1 - A Fiery Rose**

* * *

"Look, I'm sorry. Vomit Boy was the first thing that came to mind."

"Oh yeah, what if I called you Crater Face?"

"Hey, that explosion was an accident!"

"Well, the name is Jaune, Jaune Arc. Short, sweet, rolls of the tongue. Ladies love it."

"O-Oh~? I-er, do they?"

"Ah, well, they will…"

Twas a simple, awkward exchange, nothing more, that was their first meeting.

"Jaune, we're officially in Beacon! We did it, and we're even both leaders!"

"Y-Yeah, even leaders… who'd have expected it, huh."

"Why are you sounding so glum? Weren't you going to charm all the ladies~?" She gave him a cheeky smile. "Being a leader has to help that somehow."

"Yo-You actually remember- just, never mind. Geez, why'd I gotta go say something so cliché?"

"It was, wasn't it? Really cheesy," She flashed him another smile. "But I didn't dislike it. It was silly but in a fun way."

Yet any small bit can be the ignition for any small spark of a relation, be it of any kind.

"Oh, Ruby, you're here. Sorry to drag you away from your team."

"You shouldn't apologize, Jaune, and I was the one who called this strategy meeting anyway."

"'Strategy meeting', really?" He deadpanned.

"What else do you call something as important as thinking of formation and attack names? Besides, your naming sense is better than anyone on my team's. Especially Yang's, I mean, she just named her bike after some robot from some movie that she'd just seen a day after buying the bike. I blame all the explosions that movie had. Also, it didn't have enough guns."

"I see. Well, anyway, I had this name idea for a combined attack Ren and Nora seem to tend to do - Flower Power!"

"That's even cheesier, but I like it. I think it sounds cool."

"Oh? – I mean, of course it does!"

"Staying confident?" Ruby snickered.

"Hey, it's worked – sort of – so far. Anyway, with this, we'll already have our attack and formation names ready by that field trip that's coming up in a few weeks."

"Yeah, it's gonna be awesome!"

And as for where those relationships will go, what they'll be and what will eventually become of them – that is but something only time can tell.

* * *

Jaune rustled in his covers. What time was it? He didn't know, but if anything, he could tell by the moonlit windows that it was still ways off from morning.

It was uncommon for him to get up mid-night. It had become a short time habit, however, during his short… dispute with Cardin, namely after the threat of his secret being revealed being held over his head. But now, it having been a week after the trip to Forever Fall, things had calmed down.

Cardin had halted his hostilities, both toward Jaune and others, and had even surprisingly, if rarely at times, been even slightly amiable to be around.

Things had come to be better, and he was no longer held awake by any worries, so why had he awoken now when it wasn't him needing the bathroom or anything of the sort? Was he just overthinking it?

He felt a rustle again, and this time he was sure it wasn't his own movements.

He pushed himself up on his elbow as he slightly lifted the covers.

"Ruby?!" Was he more shocked that she was there or that he was so much into his own world of thoughts that he hadn't noticed the other person now in his bed, he wasn't sure.

"How-Why- What are you-" He cut himself off as he noticed the strangeness.

No, her presence there, be it the reason for it, nor how she'd gotten there, neither was what he deemed as 'strangest'.

Instead, his gaze was locked on her short red-tipped hair, and her posterior.

Oh? Oh, no, not quite for the reasons one may consider. Rather, his eyes had focused on two certain points that seemed to be rising from her hair, two reddish horns. Her behind as well – he watched it slowly sway left to right, that short, thin reddish tail on it that is.

"J-Jaune!"

"Ruby, w-what's going on?" He almost said in a panicked loud voice before realizing exactly where he was. "And what's with the get up?!" He then no less nervously whispered.

"I-I- Ah, this? Um, it's not… um, just… check it. It's not a costume."

Flustered as he was, Jaune didn't think to protest, instead complying with what she'd said while still struggling to tell what he should be thinking right now at all.

"Ow! Jaune, I told you it's not a costume, my horns don't come off!"

"Ah, s-sorry…" That helped a bit, it seemed. Her outburst helped shock him out of his shock, if that made sense. It helped calm down the situation a bit anyway, enough for him to start properly thinking again.

"I- Ruby – I… Why do you have horns? And a tail?" He eloquently blurted out.

'This is- I… I'm a succubus."

"A succu- what?"

"A succubus, you haven't heard of those?"

"No, I have, it's just I, well, I mean… I never thought they were real."

At his words, Ruby had come to wear a pout on her face, though her embarrassed blush was still going strong. "Well we exist! And well… that's it…" She quickly relented, her partial irritated fading away as the embarrassment kept kicking back in more and more.

"I'm sorry…" She averted her eyes from him.

"No, you don't have to apologize, you haven't done anything wrong – well, you did – and, but… you know what I mean… I hope." He too averted his gaze.

"No, I get it. This probably is a shock to you, huh, both me being here, like this, and me being… this."

"Don't say it like that!"

Surprised at his words, her eyes returned on him, meeting his as they were again face to face. Holding up against the embarrassment, she held his gaze. "What do you mean?"

"I don't really understand most of what's going on here, Ruby, and this is crazy for sure, but don't say 'being this,' like, well, that. You shouldn't apologize for just being a succubus more than anyone should for being human or faunus, you shouldn't apologize for just being who you are. And if you instead meant that 'sorry' about being here, I guess that's freaking me out the most, you suddenly being, well, here, at this time of night, but… I trust you." Ruby's eyes widened in surprise yet again. "I am really confused, but I won't just get mad or something immediately. You're my friend. I'll trust you and listen to your side of the story first if anything, as to why we're, well, in this situation."

"Jaune…" She stared at him wide-eyed, before then smiling at him. "You really are a cheesy dork."

"H-Hey!" He quietly protested. "H-H-Hey?!" Before once again protesting as Ruby moved forward and hugged him.

"Thank you." She whispered.

"I… Always." He gently hugged her back. "You've done the same for me."

"Still." She hung on to him for a bit longer, and he being beneath her had no room to really move or protest. "So... Succubus, Incubus, we're… a thing."

"Y-Yeah… I think I kinda got that at this point."

"Y-Yeah, well, that out of the way, and you kind of seeing I'm one, I guess I should explain the rest." Jaune eyed her curiously. "We're… sort of like in folklore, but not exactly."

"I'm not sure where to start, but I guess – we have aura too, except we're kind of born with it unlocked," She rose from his chest, eyes once again locked with his, resolute. "Unlike human and faunus, we have it unlocked at birth, but it starts off weak, and grows and matures with us instead of being at its maximum capacity upon being unlocked like with you."

"We… sort of are like in the tales in… that way, not that we'd die or anything, we eat normal food! We… we are mostly like any faunus that might have horns and a tail, a bull faunus as an example I guess, but our more unique points are about our aura." She rose her hand before his eyes and channeled her aura as demonstration. It didn't look any different than his or anyone else's, however, it was… rather weak?

"Aside from having aura right away and it growing with us, we also don't replenish it quite like normal."

"Um, how so?"

"Well, we… our bodies can regenerate aura to only a certain point, at least, while using nutrients from most normal food. Past that point, it needs… more help regenerating and keeping our aura to normal capacity. To be able to fully sustain our aura, we, uh, need…"

"The power of love?"

Ruby stared at him for a long moment. "Pff…" And then her hand raced to her mouth. "Pwhahaha." She still audibly laughed despite her best attempts at muffling her voice. "Yeah, that's one way to call it." She gazed back at him, smiling.

"Was it that dorky?"

"No, no. That's – at least I think that it's not inaccurate either, even if some wouldn't go and describe it so nicely. But the way you blurted it out, it wasn't dorky at all. Definitely cheesy, but… I liked the way you put it. I think it sounded cool." She once again averted his gaze, blush returning after that quiet bout of laughter.

Resolving herself, however, she looked him in the eyes yet again. "Jaune, I – my aura's been feeling weaker for about a year now. I'm half-succubus, so it's less impactful than with other succubae, but in the end it's still like a normal succubus' aura. My aura is… a lot weaker than the average student's."

"Ruby-"

"It's fine. It's been mostly fine. I guess my fighting style's really helped me patch it up. I focus on dodging. I use my semblance in short bursts and my Crescent to propel myself more. I won't say I wasn't mad about it, about my aura being limited, but I was fine with it in the end."

She rose up from the bed, Jaune still somewhat flabbergast as he gazed at her back, unable to discern her current expression.

"I know it's hard to believe, but that wasn't the reason I came here tonight. I… I'm not sure why really, or at least how to exactly put it in words. I just, I felt some kind of impulse, some feeling. I- I-" He then noticed the streak at the side of her face.

"I should go – Jaune?!" Before she'd had chance to take her leave she found his hand gently holding on to hers.

"I told you, Ruby, didn't I? I believe you; I trust you just like you trusted me so many times till now. I don't understand succubae, I just found out about them, but I'm here for you."

"So cheesy…" She softly mumbled as she brushed away the few tears that were at edge of her eye.

"Hmm?"

"I…" She felt his hand around hers, felt how lightly – gently it held her, enough that a simple tug would immediately shake it off. She also felt how his hand had enveloped hers as much as it could, thumb gently rubbing the back of her hand as if to sooth her.

She squeezed his hand tightly. "I don't know what it is, but I never felt this before. I haven't had many guy friends, but I've had a few, most of them hunters in training too. Yet I never felt this kind of impulse towards them, towards anyone, like I felt…" Her voice already quiet lest she wakes Jaune's sleeping teammates now turned to a whisper. "Like I felt towards you." She mumbled as she found it hard to meet his gaze once again.

A gentle hand found itself on her shoulder as it gave it a light squeeze. Ruby's eyes came up again and locked with his. For a moment she found it hard to not snicker. His face was as bright as a tomato.

"Ruby, I, uh, do you – am I being really wrong in presuming – ah, I… is it... What-What do you mean?"

"You know, I'm really awkward. Socially inept said Weiss once, though she didn't mean it – I think. A geek, a weapon nerd, and I can be childish at times. And compared to Yang…"

"Yang's herself, and an amazing girl." Jaune continued in her silence.

"Yeah, that's what most people say."

"And you're no less amazing yourself."

"That's really cheesy again." She was surprised at how far less tense she felt, at how she listened intently rather than waste her time in surprise at his words.

"Yeah, probably, but what do you expect from a guy as awkward as you, and who might not be the most into weapons, but is twice the dork you are regardless." He flashed her a smile. "Besides, it's true. You're amazing as you are exactly because you're yourself."

'Ladies love it, huh?' She thought. 'Who to think you'd be so right.'

"Jaune, tomorrow, can we talk, properly? I want to tell you something."

"Alright, and don't worry, your secret's safe with me."

'I know, you dork, why do you think I didn't even bother asking you to keep it?' She felt her smile grow.

"Aright," She whispered, pulling Jaune in for a quick hug to his surprise. "Then I'll go before any of your team wakes up. It's a whole wonder they're all still asleep!"

"Y-Yeah, ha, ha…" He could only nervously laugh at that.

Finally letting him out of the grip of her hug, she swiftly made her way to the door, turning with a few final words to him before closing it. "Thanks, Jaune, for being there for me, and for being you, too!" She left him with a final bright smile.

"A-Anytime!" He did his best to not splutter his words. He could swear it seemed like she was almost glowing as she left.

Looking back at his teammates, he let out a sigh as it seemed that all of them were still asleep.

Tonight had been quite something, and by the looks of it, tomorrow might end up just as crazy. No more so than now - he could only hope.

* * *

**My initial game plan for this was something quite a bit different than what I usually try to write, and while it definitely is different from my norm, it's quite the different direction from what I'd first outlined as an idea.**

**The initial idea had certain actions... smut - it had smut. Yet despite that being the planning phase, this is the end product after the writing phase. Man I stray far off from any of my plans.**

**Ah, but here I go rambling on as my usual spammy self. Hope you enjoyed!**


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